Does Teaching English Mean Teaching Culture?

I think the question of ‘teaching culture’ is much less about “Do I or don’t I” and much more about “How much?” and being able to recognize exactly what culture is.

Eli Hinkel discussed the questions of the visible and the invisible culture in the ESL and EFL classroom in his essay on Building Awareness and Practical Skills to Facilitate Cross-Cultural Communication, published in a TESOL training guide some years ago.

In a nutshell, the visible culture is that which we can see and readily identify. Holidays, forms of address, expressions of numbers, dates, etc. The invisible culture is much more difficult to put in a box and forms our assumptions and worldviews, often without our even realizing it - inseparable from a teacher’s identity and self. The invisible cultural traits we have often shape our lesson planning, language item selection, and even responses or correction technique in the classroom. This is of particular importance when teaching abroad.

Interesting distinction - it makes a lot of sense.

It sounds like you’re worrying too much about what people will think of you for teaching about the way your country operates. I think it is very important to teach foreigners about the fine points of culture which often have to do with everyday life in a foreign country. Taking time to learn the culture of the country you are living in shows the native people that you respect them enough to do as they do. It\’s not about politics, for once, I am happy to say.

Thanks for your comment - it raises an interesting question.

Nowadays, I’d say most EFL students have little intention of actually moving to an English-speaking country, and really, don’t even expect to use English predominantly with native speakers: It’s a language for international communication. If you’re teaching a class of immigrants who clearly do intend to live in the country and also want to learn about customs, that’s another story. Students in many places though already have a LOT of exposure to US culture(and to some extent other English-speaking cultures), and I don’t think it’s the way to go, for me at least, to assume that because they want to learn the language, they are necessarily enamored with English-speaking or US culture (don’t worry, I’m not saying they’re the same!)

These are the reasons for my concern - it’s not primarily what people think of me - but I’d also point out that in the context of a private language school (well, in any business), what people think of you is actually important.

In my mind, how much a person who moves somewhere should assimilate is another question entirely…but an interesting one.

Thanks for your comment!